Cocaine usage has increased as the drug has become cheaper and more widely available, Sedqa operations director Jesmond Schembri said this morning.

Speaking at the presentation of the operation reports of the agencies falling within the Foundation for Social Welfare Service - Sedqa, Sapport and Appogg, he said that heroin remained the mostly used drug among Sedqa clients but there was an increase in cocaine usage.

This was because it had become cheaper and more widely available due to new import routes.

He noted that in 2009, 1,112 clients made use of the Detox Centre in Guardamangia at least once.

On alcohol, he said that even though laws on alcohol use by minors had been toughened, enforcement was still lacking.

Asked whether the decriminalisation of certain substances was the way forward, foundation CEO Sina Bugeja would only say that the foundation was not comfortable with the way the current system dealt with users so other options had to be considered.

Appogg, the national social welfare agency for children and families in need, dealt with 8,000 cases each year.

The agency, which employs 182 people and has 160 volunteers, focuses on children, young people and vulnerable adults.

The operations director of Sapport, which provides community and residential services for the elderly, Marcel Pisani said that there was an increased demand for services as the disabled were living longer with the improvements being made in medicine. This was stretching stressing the agency’s financial and human resources.

Foundation president Lawrence Zammit said that the time had come for a caring state to be introduced.

The country had started by providing a welfare state, but it was now time for the people who used the foundation’s services to be given the opportunity to live and work in society. He also called for better synergy between government organisations and NGOs.